Poetry is a Healing Salve

Being alone requires bravery.
Only in solitude do you discover parts of yourself you might not be proud of.

How can I expect the love I’m deserving of while I’m unwilling to even show myself enough?

Pain becomes familiar.
Unrelenting grief is the worst, most reliable companion.

But solitude also unearths inner strength.
I learned how to grow quietly.
For myself, for once.
And heartache
that was once a headwind, became the breeze at my back.
Moving me forward and further away from familiar pains each day. 

It’s not easy to give yourself credit when you’ve always accepted the blame.
Believe me though,
I’m learning. 

It won’t be long now before the rest of the world sees on the outside, all the changes that took place in the dark.
I know well the work required for the life I desire.
And since I’ve gone through hell already, that doesn’t intimidate me.
When you’ve spent much of your life either struggling, suffering, or healing, dreaming doesn’t come naturally.
And still, I shed the dead weight and dream. 

I found joy and success even while carrying a heavy heart.
But this newfound lightness excites me. 

~ J. Raymond “I’m Learning”
The Kindred Project, Vol. 1